Your computer will kill you: part 1063

Cooked VDU cases are baaad

Chemicals used in the making of VDU cases could be causing illness and allergies in office workers according to a new study reported in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.

The report says that new computers are the worst offenders, and could be contributing to a variety of conditions including blocked noses, skin allergies and headaches.

The bad-guy chemical is triphenyl phosphate, and has a documented allergenic effect of humans, according to the authors of the report. The chemical is part of the organo-phosphate group, widely used in electronic equipment.

Researchers found that levels of the chemical were significantly - up to ten times - above background levels in offices with equipment from more than half the brands tested.

Boffins at Stockholm University recommended that computer manufacturers run machines for ten days to "bake off" as much of the chemical as possible before the machine was sold to a member of the public.

However, this is not the only thing we need to worry about. According to toxicologists many of the chemicals used in plastic are dangerous to humans, and there is evidence that they cause poisoning.

The researchers recommended that the chemical not be used in the manufacture of monitors and other similar equipment. ®